Q 01/05

Which fruit did Gus Grissom hang on the Apollo 1 simulator to show what he thought of it?

A) A banana

B) A lemon

C) A prune

D) A crab apple

Answer · why

B) A lemon

A lemon, picked from a tree in his own back yard, was Grissom's verdict on a trainer that could not keep pace with the spacecraft's constant changes.

Q 02/05

NASA disliked Gus Grissom's Gemini 3 nickname, Molly Brown, so which alternative name did he offer?

A) Lusitania

B) Hindenburg

C) Titanic

D) Andrea Doria

Answer · why

C) Titanic

Titanic was the cheeky counter-offer, so NASA gave in and let Molly Brown stand. The joke was aimed at his Mercury capsule, which had sunk in the Atla...

Q 03/05

Which contraband snack did Gus Grissom's Gemini 3 crewmate pull from a pocket and offer him in orbit?

A) Peanut butter crackers

B) Corned beef sandwich

C) Chocolate chip cookies

D) Beef jerky strips

Answer · why

B) Corned beef sandwich

Corned beef sandwich crumbs could have fouled the electronics, so both men were reprimanded after a few bites. Grissom still called the gag a highligh...

Q 04/05

Which condition nearly cost Gus Grissom his place among the Mercury astronauts during medical screening?

A) Color blindness

B) A heart murmur

C) Poor hearing

D) Hay fever

Answer · why

D) Hay fever

Hay fever almost disqualified him, until Grissom argued that it would not matter because there is no ragweed pollen in space.

Q 05/05

Flight crew chief Deke Slayton wrote that Gus Grissom would have been his top pick for which role?

A) First American in orbit

B) First man on the Moon

C) First Skylab commander

D) First American spacewalker

Answer · why

B) First man on the Moon

First man on the Moon was the role Slayton had in mind, because he wanted a Mercury veteran to take those steps. Two senior NASA managers backed his c...